The present invention relates generally to agricultural machinery and, more particularly, to improvements to balers for harvested crops. Various hydraulically controlled devices for actuating the functional elements of a round baler are generally known.
Hydraulic cylinders and their associated control devices are used in round balers for pivoting the baler's tail gate into the bale ejecting position or into the baling position. Hydraulic cylinders and their associated control devices are also used for actuating the locking mechanism for the tailgate and for controlling the tensioning arm for the rotating belts. In the majority of cases, either a separate hydraulic cylinder is employed for each individual means requiring actuation or a separate hydraulic cylinder is employed for complicated combinations of such means to effect a plurality of actuating functions. Such arrangements give rise to very high manufacturing costs.
Round balers such as the one disclosed in EP 0 130 258 B1, are also known to comprise a fixed housing part having a tail gate pivotally mounted thereon and a plurality of circulating belts disposed around the periphery of the baling chamber. The path followed by these belts is adapted to the diameter of the round bale by means of a number of guide rollers arranged on a tensioning arm. In these balers, the pivoting of the tailgate and that of the tensioning arm is effected with the aid of a common hydraulic cylinder, which is connected to these two components and also to an appertaining hydraulic control device. However, this arrangement is not suitable for high performance balers, which regulate bale densities, as no locking mechanism is provided between the tailgate and the frontal housing.
The present invention is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems set forth above.